hav(h)arot

Live-electronics work, inspired by analogue tape (reel-to-reel) composition techniques and by granular synthesis processing.

The digital interface is used for real-time sample processing. It follows my finger’s movements and pressure on a touch-sensitive MIDI controller, and controls the processing parameters while displaying the movement on the graphical user interface (GUI), thus rendering visible the physicality of the computer performance – a performative aspect which is often lost in computer music settings. The GUI also highlights parts of the digital buffer (focusing on the part of the audio sample being processed), thus affording an additional view of the digital audio’ properties.

I use the interface to process sampled audio, and in particular voice samples, thus putting the focus of this work on speech and on language. The interface allows me to cut sampled sentences and words into syllables, consonants and vowels, or even smaller speech particles – on the verge of our sonic perception. The result is a continuous interplay between semantic content—“meaning”—and sonic experience.

I wanted to create an interface with which I can work with politically charged material: news and media reports, politician’s speeches, current affairs, etc. Sound bites of a world that needs mending, collected from social media channels – our digital town square or modern public space, and a highly polarised political and ideological echo chamber. Taking the original material out of its normal context provides an opportunity to re-examine and deconstruct it with fresh ears. This is indicated by the title hav(h)arot, meaning (in Hebrew) syllables (havarot, הברות) and clarifications (hav’harot, הבהרות).

Schouwburg De Lawei, Drachten 2022 (Stroomopwarts residency finnisage)